Cambodia: Wild, wild west

It was another early start to the day but today, our mode of transportation was two SUVs instead of the usual MPV. Our time in the wild finally came and we will leave the comforts of the city for the next three days in search of more exotic bird life in the wild interiors. And as usual, anticipation was high.

The journey was long and the countryside was dry and dusty. But the vast open areas of these arid plains, not unlike scenes from a classical western, do have their appeals. In fact, they are home to some incredibly fascinating bird species and one in particular was the main objective for the morning excursion.

When a bird is as intriguing as the Bengal Florican, I do not see the need to sugar coat my description of it. Bustards are a family of birds that is as foreign to me as the mother tongue of this history-rich country. With only about 800 birds left in the world of which half is found in Cambodia, it is inevitably an endangered species like most of the other notable fauna found here. We visited one of its strongholds, the Prolay Grassland, a Bengal Florican Conservation Area east of Siem Reap Province. I thought the open landscape of Chuping in Perlis back home was vast until we made our way into this reserve.

A Green Bee-eater hunting next to the access road at first light briefly derailed us from our objective. I was also looking forward to this lifer as bee-eaters are such graceful and beautiful aerial hunters. I was to discover in the days to come that Cambodia has a healthy population of Green Bee-eaters but it did not deter me from appreciating this striking little bird to the fullest now.

The Pied Bushchat is quite a common sight here as well but it was still an exciting lifer no less. In terms of appearance, an almost completely black plumage may not get you a whole lot of admirers. However, black is one of my favourite colours and this charming bird was given its due attention.

For our quest of the Bengal Florican, we acquired the services of the local wardens. The grassland covered the landscape as far as the eye can see and locating a bird the size of a large duck is literally like looking for a needle in a haystack. The knowledge and acute sense of sight of the wardens were invaluable to our mission. A lone Small Buttonquail was confident of its ability to blend into the sea of grass. However, its defence mechanism was no match for the eagle-eyed wardens. While my companions cherished another lifer, I obtained my best photo of this adorable gamebird that has a sparse distribution in Malaysia.

Then we glanced upon a large winged creature floating in from the horizon. Time froze as I strained my eyes into the rising sun because the identity of the bird, even at this distance, was unmistakable. I was staring at my first ever wild crane and it also happened to be the world’s tallest flying bird. When the Sarus Crane finally landed, it was half hidden by the tall grass. The distance and lighting condition indirectly provided a dreamlike effect to the image. It was nothing more than a record shot but the encounter almost made me forget why I was here in the first place. Hesitantly, I had to leave the crane where it stood and continued on with my original quest before the temperature rose to an unbearable heights.

Even with the help of the wardens, the Bengal Florican still proved elusive for the time being. Deep inside I knew what we up against and for this lifer, we had to our work cut out for us.

Luckily, this grassland was teeming with bird life and we had some interesting distractions during our hunt like this foraging Oriental Skylark. It is yet another species that I have been hunting for years without success back home. The differences to me were indeed subtle from the commoner pipits. On the other hand, my judgement could be clouded by the ongoing search for the star bird of this locality.

Red Avadavats were commonly seen in the vicinity. The strikingly coloured males are exquisite gems of the grassland and I wished I had more time to spend with the flocks we encountered along the way.

Then came the much delayed climax to the visit. The wardens signalled us over and we rushed to their location. A sudden rustle of wings caught our attention as a female Bengal Florican took flight at a distance across our path. She may lack the contrasting colours of the male but she was still the curtain raiser for some stellar performances among the sea of grass.

It was near impossible to creep up on a Bengal Florican in its element and distant sightings were all we could muster. For a bird its size, it is certainly gifted with the ability to hide well. It will let you see it when you are miles away but once you approach within reasonable distances, it vanishes by going low behind the grass or indentations on the ground. In short, it was an oversized quail. Like the female, the only images worth sharing of the males were flight shots but it was a cherished experience nevertheless.

If only the real thing was half as easy...

With the Bengal Florican securely in the bag, we now had the luxury for less significant matters like for example having the most important meal of the day...

The wardens then took our party around the reserve for more birding and all the stops we made were nearby a pond. It made perfect sense as this is the dry season and water is a prized commodity. At one such pond, the Almighty blessed us another chance with one of His more impressive creations. A pair of Sarus Cranes was resting at the water’s edge and I have been in this country long enough to know how incredibly shy some of the residents here can be. So, we enjoyed these remarkable birds from afar.

Imagine this used to be a scene back home in Malaysia. Unfortunately, the Sarus Crane has long being extinct there and to see them here now in the flesh is a true privilege for me. But greed is a deadly sin that I sometimes surrender to and wanting a better image of the resting pair inevitably put them to flight. They were still a fair distance away but I guess the threat of approaching human forms were too much for the cranes to tolerate.

Yesterday, I was given very little chance to photograph the Siberian Rubythroat. I did not fare any better today. The closely related Bluethroat was present in bigger numbers but record shots were all that I could obtained. The absence of their namesake indicates they are most probably females. Although these terrestrial birds are new to me, their shyness compounded with the absence of colours killed off much of my enthusiasm for them. The ever rising temperature out in the field was no help either.  

With the testing conditions here in Cambodia, fresh coconut water became our new favourite drink to quench our at times insatiable thirst...

Our next destination was Tmatboey Village – home to the Giant Ibis and White-shouldered Ibis. We arrive at the Kulen Promtep Wildlife Sanctuary in the mid afternoon after a much welcomed lunch and the dry dipterocarp forest welcomed our arrival with intense heat and dust. The Tmatboey Eco Lodge is a modest accommodation located within the sanctuary and our home for the next two days.

Hopefully, this photo on the front door of our chalet is a good omen...

We barely unpacked when Mardy announced that one of the local guides (again local knowledge was vital) found a nice surprise nearby the lodge and it turned out to be the perfect welcome gift. A lone White-shouldered Ibis was foraging at a pond minutes away from our chalets and we cautiously moved closer. But a distant tractor on the move put the ibis to flight and it alighted on a tall tree far away. The White-shouldered Ibis may live in the shadows of its bigger relative the Giant Ibis but this critically endangered species (with less than 500 individuals left in the world) deserves recognition as well. However, I could tell there and then that its skittish nature will be a major hindrance.

The forest here is sparse and low. There is no doubt about that and to balance things out with birding in the rain forest, nature made most of the birds here shy. A foraging Rufous Treepie decided to cut us some slack and provided a prolonged and relatively close encounter. The striking colouration and stunning appearance makes it one of the most attractive birds found here.

Back in Malaysia, the Black-hooded Oriole only occurs in Langkawi and it is quite ironic that I had to travel all this way before I can tick it off my life list.

The Burmese Shrike is another new species for me and it was certainly a cracker. Naturally, it had our attention.

A recognisable and distinct call echoed through the vicinity and one cannot mistaken the nasal notes of the Great Slaty Woodpecker for anything else. On any other day, I would have tried my best to obtain better images of this flock of three birds. The trees here are half the height of those back home and even with canopy dwellers like these woodpeckers, I still stand a good chance. But today was no ordinary day. We were making our way towards one of ponds in this wildlife sanctuary where the Giant Ibises have been frequenting of late. And what is now considered to be the world’s biggest woodpecker will have to play an unfamiliar role of a supporting cast instead of the lead performer.

I caught sight of a few large birds circling above the forest. Upon further scrutiny they turned out to be Lesser Adjutants and Wolly-necked Storks. The latter was a lifer and I was overjoyed. However in time, I realized that a sight of soaring storks is not always a reason to celebrate as it could mean that the storks have been recently spooked to flight from their feeding ground. When storks and other large water birds are spooked they rarely return anytime soon and sometimes, not at all.

On this occasion, the culprit was a local villager and his dogs. Only God knows why he had the sudden urge to walk his dogs through a wildlife sanctuary. His unexplainable behaviour left us staring at an empty pond. Gradually, some birds did return to the vicinity and the most notable one was the Green Bee-eater. I may not have much time for this elegant beauty back at the Bengal Florican site but I certainly did now.

Birding in a foreign country meant every little brown job had to be scrutinized. And a pipit, no matter how ordinary looking, perched on a tall dead tree deserved some attention from its behaviour alone. It turned out to be an Olive-backed Pipit – a species that I have not seen for many moons. I did not know then but this dead tree overlooking the ‘ibis pond’ will play a significant part in my life in the very near future.

The Common Woodshrike, as the name implies, is a common sight here in Kulen Promtep. This juvenile was by far the most confiding one we came across.

Young birds can sometimes be too bold for their own good. Lucky for this guy, it has absolutely nothing to fear from this group of humans.

The dipterocarp forest briefly came to life once again in the late evening as the residents prepared to roost for the night. I am no stranger to woodpeckers as my homeland has a variety of stunning species. It may be a case of the grass is always greener on the other side but I find the spectacular Black-headed Woodpecker to have no parallels in terms of aesthetic appeal. Light was vanishing by the minute but not to take the time to appreciate this pair of woodpeckers bonding on a dead tree one last time before retiring for the night would be unforgivable.

As darkness fell, a sense of gloom started to crawl its way into my soul. My main target of the trip has eluded us so far. Will we suffer the same fate for our remaining days here in this wilderness? As my mind started to ponder, my ears picked up an odd call at a distance. The words “Giant Ibis” seeped through the lips of our guide. Moments later three dark shapes flew overhead and alighted on a distant tree. The moment I have been waiting for has arrived and as the one percent of the world’s population of Giant Ibis prepared to roost, they were unaware that a group of birders were watching their every move intently. There was just about enough light left for a record shot but the quality of the image was no longer relevant. But the moment and everything leading to it were - from tolerating the aching joints after a long day of birding to the second I finally laid eyes on this astonishing creature. I have come across countless interesting bird species in all my 30 years as a birder and the Giant Ibis is certainly one of the most incredible lifers for me. What a way to wrapped things up for our third day of birding in Cambodia. As we made our way back in the dark, I now have a good feeling about this birding site. To find out if my intuition was right, you have to wait for my next post in which we continued our quest for the critically endangered Giant Ibis.

Cambodia: A tale of a temple and a lake (Part 2)

I raked in quite a few lifers on the boat trip today. All were significant records but one truly stood out from the rest and it was the Spot-billed Pelican. Regardless of what species we were observing, as soon as this unique waterfowl comes into view everyone’s eyes were on it. It was a much anticipated lifer for me and probably the bird of the day as well despite the stiff competition it faced from some other species recorded on this memorable exploration of the largest lake in Southeast Asia. You will have to bear with me as I have so many images of the Spot-billed Pelican from this trip that it could easily have a post of its own.

A good number present had darker overall plumage. It is not easy for me to age these birds precisely (for any bird as a matter of fact) and hopefully, there are no errors in all my posts from this incredible country. As it takes a few years for the pelicans to fully mature, I can only assume these darker birds as subadults because of the present of distinct spots on the upper mandible which is a sign of maturity. I never consider myself an expert birder. I make identification mistakes and have no idea how to separate all those near identical species. Anyway, the important thing is that these are all definitely Spot-billed Pelicans and I enjoyed every minute spent with them – regardless of their age and sex.

I love everything about the Spot-billed Pelican - from its massive size and the utterly enormous bill to its laidback approach to life. It is truly an amazing animal. Best of all, the pelicans were not that shy and all the good photographic opportunities presented were utilized to the fullest.

A Spot-billed Pelican casually paddling along the waters of the lake was a picture of tranquility. But it did very little to calm my nerves each time our paths crossed.

We even had one resting on a tree offering a chance to gawk at the true size of this bird.

In flight, these huge birds are surprisingly graceful but taking off will take some effort due to their bulk.

They fly at a relaxing pace as well and that enabled my gear to capture some flight shots in situations where my gear usually fails. It was a breeze to focus on a flying pelican as it is one big mass of feathers and wings.

Needless to say, shooting against the blue sky was even easier...

And when a flock of them are in flight, they look like a squadron of aircrafts. Not the swift fighter jets though. But more like bombers. With the approaching noon, more and more of the pelicans took to the sky taking full advantage of the hot air thermals generated by the blistering heat.

Together with a few species of storks, the Spot-billed Pelicans sometimes darkened the sky with their sheer numbers and size. It was a true visual treat for me and my companions. And where better to enjoy this view than from the top of a wooden watch tower in the middle of a freshwater swamp forest. However, it took a little trek along a muddy trail to get to the tower and the climb down is not for the faint-hearted.

The storks we encountered today ranked a close second after the Spot-billed Pelican in my book. In a way, it was a relief that the Asian Openbill has colonized Peninsular Malaysia and is now a regular sight in my home state of Penang. If not, there will be at least an additional 100 photographs be processed back home. It could be my imagination but I find the Openbills here tougher looking. It comes as no surprise considering the other more aggressive storks that it has to find a living alongside with.

And here there is no other stork more sinister looking than the Adjutants. Both the Lesser and Greater Adjutants are found here with the former outnumbering the latter significantly. It was a shame I had very little chance to observe the Greater Adjutant and this record shot of an individual in flight is all I have to show for this exceptional bird.

The Lesser Adjutant, on the other hand, performed admirably and overshadowed all my encounters with the species before this faithful day. This was the closest I have ever gotten to a Lesser Adjutant in the wild and I must admit, it did look intimidating. Even downright scary. It is not all looks either because Adjutants are quite accomplished predators. That is the reason why I fell head over heels with this stork the first day we met. The look, the character and the majesty – it is one awesome representative of the natural world.

You might wonder why majestic until you see one in flight. Enormous wings carry this massive bird with such ease that elegance, unbelievable as it might seem, is the first word that comes to mind. I have seen words like ugly used to describe this stork and in a sense, it is true. However for me, all I see is a striking animal evolved to perfection with the charisma to have me eternally spellbound by its presence.

Ironically, the commonest stork in the area happens to the shyest one. The Painted Stork can easily be seen flying above the lake throughout the day and sometimes, in great numbers. Naturally, I managed to obtain a fair number of this attractive stork in flight.

There are free flying populations from the zoo back in the capital city of Malaysia. So, this species is not new to me but those are captive birds. After all these years, I can now finally tick this one off my global life list. To approach a Painted Stork is challenging to say the least. It is particularly wary of human presence and I suspect, especially birders. I know I should always be grateful of what I have been given but I wish I could have obtained one nice image of this stork. The pink plumage, looking very much like a smeared patch of paint (hence the name), near the base of the wings was quite variable in intensity from one bird to another. Compared to the brutish built of the Lesser Adjutant, the Painted Stork looks delicate.

The best photo I managed for the Painted Stork at the end of trip was this individual resting on top of a tree. It tolerated the approach of our boat but unfortunately, the foliage that provided it a sense of security was a major hindrance to my photographic efforts.

However testing the Painted Storks were, they were no match for the shyness of another family of water birds present here – the ibises. And one member of the family was the main reason for my visit to this rugged country but it does not occur here at the lake. Today was just the appetizers before the main meal. Even so, the Black-headed Ibises were shy and encounters were hard to come by.

The black and white plumage of the ibis made it difficult to get the right exposure especially in this sunny condition. My flight shots are definitely an improvement from the foraging shots. It is not only the ibises but most birds will often feel more invincible when they are in the flight and are more tolerable towards human presence.

Just when I thought the Black-headed Ibis was just being plain difficult, we came across our first Glossy Ibis of the trip and this small ibis took being difficult to a whole new level. Not even once did we manage to see it not flying away. For once, a water bird encountered here in Cambodia could not overshadow my previous experiences with the same species back home. In fact, the ibises were a much needed reality check to wake me up from this dream-like birding endeavour we have been experiencing here at the Prek Toal Bird Sanctuary.

To conclude our visit here, we had lunch at one of the floating village houses near the entry point. The meal was prepared by the locals and it was a way to generate income for both the village and the bird sanctuary.

The handicraft shop next to the eatery serves the same purpose. Naturally, we did what we could to help support their cause to protect and conserve this piece of heaven on earth and it certainly deserves all the help it can get.

It is usually unproductive around noon as the temperature will soar to almost unbearable degrees. We seek shelter in what I could best describe as a snack bar overlooking the paddy fields (which is where we will be heading once the heat subsides). A nesting colony of weavers next to the outlet caught my immediate attention. It was not because of the birds but the nest as they did not look like the Baya Weaver’s architectural capabilities. A quick check with Mardy and they turned out to be Streaked Weavers. It looks quite similar to the Baya Weaver but the streaks on its underparts are quite distinct once you know it is one of the main distinguishing features.

The distance and lighting may not be favourable but a lifer is a lifer. With nothing much else about, we observed the male birds flying to and fro the colony collecting nesting materials in preparation for the breeding season.

Lazing on a hammock and enjoying some local snacks (no acquired taste required this time) and cool drinks while at the same time observing a lifer in action - life does not get any better than this.

The local pooch seemed to have it good here as well…

We trekked onto the paddy fields when the time was right and obtained a few more lifers. But it was tough work as the birds were shy. Without the aid of a vehicle as a mobile hide (like how we do it back home), photography was difficult. Lifers like the Chestnut-capped Babbler, Striated Grassbird, Bluethroat and Siberian Rubythroat provided only brief glimpses. Luckily, our second day of birding in Cambodia concluded on a high note. A pair of Plain Prinias were displaying among stalks of long grass and the pair was more accommodating than the rest.

This open country warbler may not be oozing with appeal, but their performance was worthy of praise.

It is a rather lengthy first post to our birding adventure to the kingdom of Cambodia. The birding was terrific despite the testing conditions and shyness of most of the birds. Here is a photo of yours truly getting acquainted with the locals to conclude my post. The joys and tribulations of Day 3 in Cambodia will be covered in the next post.